Just 2% of containerised freight moving through the Port of Liverpool travels by rail — a modal share that sits far below comparable UK facilities and frames the scale of the hinterland challenge facing Peel Ports as Liverpool2 ramps up.

Peel Ports has committed £400m to the Liverpool2 container terminal, engineered to berth two 380-metre vessels simultaneously. The operator is also earmarking £100m for a steel and metals facility, including a 140,000 square-foot storage building. Both projects point to higher throughput — and to a road network already under pressure on the Merseyside approach.

Why does the 2% figure matter?

A Greengauge 21 study published in September models how the port can absorb forecast freight growth without adding further congestion to the local road network. With rail handling just 2% of boxes, virtually all inland leg moves currently run by truck.

The same study warns that rail growth will stall without addressing constraints elsewhere on the system. There is no current plan to add freight train paths across Manchester, despite ongoing upgrades in the region.

Director Jim Steer said: "The Manchester rail network is a bottleneck which isn't addressed by the Trans Pennine Route Upgrade (TRU), nor – as far as rail freight is concerned – by schemes such as Stage 2 of Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) – the proposed new Liverpool-Manchester rail link."

What route could unlock a wider catchment?

The study points to an existing alignment north of Manchester, routed via Blackburn, as the most viable freight corridor. It would feed Liverpool-bound traffic onto the Settle & Carlisle line, allowing operators to bypass the busy West Coast Main Line for flows heading to Scotland, and onto the Calder Valley Line, which links the port to the Yorkshire, Humber and North East rail freight terminal cluster.

"The potential 'new' routes for freight would require targeted investment in the existing rail network and, it is estimated, could be capable of delivery within a 5-10 year period," Steer added.

For Peel Ports, this would effectively redraw the port's hinterland map. A Blackburn-led alignment could extend Liverpool's practical rail reach across northern England, reaching Manchester, Leeds, the Humber industrial belt and the North East — a catchment the current network fails to serve.

What does this mean for shippers and carriers?

For shippers and forwarders, a working rail option out of the port would offer an inland alternative for containerised imports and exports destined for the Yorkshire and North East corridors. Carriers would gain a longer-haul intermodal option at a facility historically dominated by short-sea and intra-UK trades.

For Peel Ports, the modal-shift case is partly commercial. Liverpool2's deeper water and longer quays are designed to handle the largest container vessels calling at the port. Without efficient hinterland links, the terminal's vessel-handling edge does not translate into lower door-to-door costs.

What remains unresolved?

• Trans Pennine Route Upgrade adds no freight train paths through Manchester
• Northern Powerhouse Rail Stage 2 prioritises passenger capacity
• No funding envelope has been set for the Blackburn corridor upgrade
• Cost estimates for the network modifications are not included in the report

The study does not produce a fully costed plan, and the Manchester bottleneck requires a parallel solution before any Liverpool rail strategy can move beyond a concept. Peel Ports did not respond to a request for comment beyond the Greengauge 21 findings.

Looking ahead, the £400m Liverpool2 buildout is set to reach full operational capacity over the coming decade, and the commercial pressure to shift a higher share of boxes off local roads and onto intermodal rail will only intensify as Liverpool welcomes more large deep-sea calls.